James G

In the moment, after the penalty miss, the adrenaline rush made Southampton look ok, and they scored. That is what they need to lock into, that urgency. The press was laboured at times, but over time, it worked against Leicester. Glad to see they did that part, but positioning nearer the player needs to be better. The entrapment of two, three players around the Leicester players worked and put them off. Defending during corners needs to be better, the back post was abandoned sometimes, basic play. It's still looking muddled in the middle with 4222 and congested. They were dominating out wide early on. Bazanu needs space, stop with the pass to the side on goal kicks players need to push forward. Give space in behind. He did some ok stuff, but is still awkward.

Leicester play out from defence, so if they are pressed and harried, they will make mistakes, so we need to press, no laziness. Just be in their faces all the time, and that'll win the game.

There has to be a distinct way of playing, so the players know what they are doing. I'm guessing Ralph had his playbook, and they were following that, but Ralph constantly tinkered which probably confused the players which affected performance, and ultimately their confidence. Nathan obviously made things worse. Now, when u are buying players, you have to look at what systems they are coming from and see if they fit in. Ultimately, I don't think the players coming in are bad, but if you are getting ex Man City players to play like Luton, then it's not going to work. The way Pep plays is to have visible players available close to the ball. If you are playing a system that stretches play, suited for tall Paul, then players are further away from each other, so the player needs a few extra nanoseconds to see who is available, but that is a skill in itself. The only way Southampton are going to thrive is by picking a system, pick the players then play that every week and add to it over time. Almost like rebooting a computer. It's the same problem Chelsea are having.

It's experience I would say, same with Sulemana. I think that's where an experienced manager comes in useful, one that has worked with these kind of players. Or you can do what Man City do and have players close by that you can see an outlet for the ball

The 4222 is ok, especially on the counter, but when it works, you're maybe giving Che a through ball, a one on one, but it's not his strength. Also, the crosses tend to be more diagonal and rushed, they are easier to defend. There has to be more width, it stretches the play, you have more time, you have a tall guy in the box. Alcaraz at his peak is like Lampard, he's a really good box to box player, he needs to be given a run of games. You have DCC, Orsic, there are some really good players in the team.

I think because Bazanu was schooled at Man City, I think he's struggling with the setup at Southampton. Defenders need to be more forward with space in behind. I think he'll go on to be a good keeper with the right team, unless Southampton can adapt, which is unlikely this season. I would cash in on him and just get someone else in the summer

I think a 4-4-2 setup is the best one for the players in the team. It's the classic one you grow up playing, and for tall Paul, it makes more sense to stretch the play sometimes and cross balls in. A 4-2-2 setup can be quite narrow sometimes

I emailed Arsene Wenger from a past comment, I know him from his charity work, he says he is not coming to Southampton, he is going to retire after his current role with Fifa, but he wishes you all good luck and says he has admired Southampton for a long time for their player development over the years 👍

I agree, I think this is the game that will define the rest of the season

Low grade hamstring injury, it's usually 3-8 weeks for recovery, players tend to return after 3 weeks ish. Ideally, players should take longer, or it'll recur every season, this is kwps second hamstring injury.

It's because some players were asked for their feedback, and they thought his narrow setups wouldn't suit the team as there are good wide players in the team. So, it was a suck it and see contract offered

Selles is intelligent, I think he'd be interesting and the players like him.

It is half true, not a mutiny though. If I was to say, where are the teams strengths right now, what would u say. That was the issue

Well, all his formations have four at the back, and he likes his teams to pass forward, not sideways. So that meets alot of criticisms often levelled at managers here. Also, he's been schooled by Ragnick and Bielsa, and Haaland speaks highly of him. Just trying to see the positives

It's a load of bunkum, DCC hadn't trained for a few days for whatever reason and wasn't going to play last weekend, he chose to have a run out with the B team. I think he said it himself if you trawl back through the news stories

I listened to some of Talk Sport earlier, and they were all over this game, and they're basing themselves there on Saturday. Nat has really rubbed them up the wrong way

Lol, that's brilliant. After I commented, and the long silence, I thought noone knew what I was referring too. I'm glad that people of a certain age remembered

Didn't Arrogant Ankersen sing the Kylie and Jason wedding song

So, how does it work now. It reads that they are supporting Jones, and if the ship goes down, so be it. You also have a team at rock bottom, seemingly because of Hassenhutl. So, do you support the team, or, do you push against the tide in the hope that they will get rid of the manager. The feel in the stadium will, inevitably, have an impact on outcomes. It's all bizarre, but it seems that everyone top to bottom has decisions to make that will ultimately decide your season. Are the new players enough for Jones to push forward, and is he strong enough emotionally and canny enough strategically to carry the team forward. I'll stop posting now, as I'm probably annoying, but I wish you all good luck 👍

That's a good post. I genuinely thought he would adapt his principles successfully but he seems lost between his own way of playing, and the way Southampton were playing before he joined. They're somewhere in the middle, and it's not working. Now he's saying he wants to go back to his own way of playing, but Southampton do not have those types of players throughout the team, so it's obviously not going to work.

29, including free agents and loans, around 175 million pounds

There's a private flight from Groningen, so maybe Southampton are going for Ricardo Pepi who they were linked with a year or so ago. Just a guess

I was just thinking about the mystery striker, and came up with Valentin Castellanos, currently on loan at Girona. If you scroll through the flights, there is one from Girona airport on Monday He plays for New York, so is part of the CFG group, Man City, so given Southampton had City staff he might be on their radar. He's a striker, good with both feet and in the air, also good off the ball. Girona are linked through Romeu, could be 10-12 million. Argentinian too. Currently linked with a move to Brighton. Just a thought anyway

I thought he'd bought or built a house in the Midlands, and that's him settled now, so I'm not sure his family would want to move again. Maybe a short loan until the summer at best, but I can't see it.

It's interesting, and there's alot of science behind it. When younger players are in the academy, they record growth spurts in the players, and they follow this over a long period of time. And with this data, they are able to calculate playing time, recovery time, and help reduce injuries. Every player is different. Problems arise when this data isn't available as not all clubs are into science, so when you buy younger players without pedigree, you are taking a bigger risk.